What is Last-Mile Delivery Fulfilment for Restaurants?

Restaurant delivery is constantly evolving. Not so long ago, the first takeaway marketplaces allowed us to order pizza online. Today, you can get a multi-course fine-dining meal delivered to your home at the touch of a button.

Restaurants know they must offer delivery, but many have issues using third-party delivery services. They don’t have control of customer interaction, the fees eat into profits, and they rely on these platforms, which might not cover the areas they want to serve.

It’s becoming more important for restaurants to own the customer experience outside the four walls of the dining room. 

But taking delivery in-house comes with its problems. Restaurants have to manage a whole new area of logistics – a complex arena of order assignment, driver recruitment, and vehicle maintenance where timing is everything. Delivering your desired standards can still be challenging, even when you run it yourself. 

That’s why we’re seeing retail services that optimize restaurant delivery fulfillment—giving operators more control over managing delivery orders, assigning drivers, and communicating with customers without the burden of managing it all themselves.

What is last-mile delivery fulfillment for restaurants? 

Last-mile delivery refers to the crucial final leg of an item’s journey before it reaches the customer. The term comes from the eCommerce world, where items are shipped to fulfillment centers in bulk. Only at this final stage of the shipping process does one driver deliver individual packages to the customer’s doorstep.

This makes last-mile delivery the most expensive and critical stage of the whole delivery process, as the efficiencies of scale no longer apply.

In the restaurant world, last-mile delivery usually applies to ready-to-eat meals delivered to customers at home or in the office. Typically, one driver provides a meal to a specific customer. So, last-mile delivery costs are higher, and keeping this cost down is a massive priority.

Well-known food delivery marketplaces – such as Uber Eats, DoorDash, Deliveroo, GrubHub, and Postmates – host restaurant menus, allow customers to browse and order on an app, and provide delivery fulfillment. These platforms focus more on the marketplace at the end of the process and charge fees per order.

White-label ordering platforms—including Slerp, Flipdish, and Hungrrr—offer a platform for restaurants to build their apps and often partner with couriers to fulfill delivery orders.

More recently, we have seen the rise of Services like Stuart, Vromo, and Uber Direct that specialize in optimizing the delivery fulfillment piece for restaurants, offering driver monitoring and communication, and fleet management tools. Whether offering in-house delivery or working with third parties, restaurants can use fulfillment platforms like this to improve the customer experience and boost loyalty. 

Why is last-mile delivery fulfillment important?

For many restaurants, delivery is an afterthought. Although many have come online and offered more off-premise dining options in 2020, operators still focus more on the traditional in-house dining experience.

But neglecting the off-premise experience is undoubtedly a mistake. More customers are ordering food for takeout and delivery, and their loyalty is just as important as your regular dine-in customers. 

A positive experience has a massive impact on customer satisfaction and loyalty. However, as these customers are already on their phones, they may be more likely to leave a negative review if unsatisfied.

Leaving the customer experience up to chance – entrusting it to a part-time delivery driver or delivery platform support staff with no connection to your restaurant – is a dangerous game. 

Delivery fulfillment matters. Even if you are super-efficient in the kitchen, on average, the last-mile driving takes up around half the customer’s waiting time. So, it should be at least half your focus as an operator.

No matter how well-presented, hot, and appetizing the food was when it left your kitchen, what matters is what it’s like when it arrives. Taking care of the details from the kitchen to the doorstep is vital.

How delivery fulfillment works for restaurants

Last-mile fulfillment is about helping restaurants own their delivery experience without having to run a logistics company themselves. The restaurant may or may not have delivery drivers on staff. Either way, a delivery fulfillment service helps the restaurant find the fastest, most efficient, and most cost-effective delivery method for each order.

That might mean giving them the tools to manage their delivery drivers effectively, matching orders to available courier services, or combining both.

The back-office management tools typically offered by fulfillment providers include real-time tracking of orders and drivers, messaging apps to contact drivers and customers, and a dashboard to view all this information and assign orders to available drivers.

They often also provide apps to help drivers manage their assigned orders, navigate, and communicate directly with customers. They may also offer marketing and loyalty programs and integrate with other services.

What are the benefits for restaurants and consumers? 

Own the customer experience.

The most significant advantage of taking your delivery orders off third-party platforms is that you can own the customer experience outside the restaurant’s walls. You can strive to offer the same service and food quality as you would in the dining room.

From the customer’s point of view, the restaurant is more accountable for the quality of the service and the food. Rather than complaining to the delivery provider about a problem, the customer can go to the restaurant. Once customers know that they will get this level of service and accountability, they are more likely to order again and more frequently.

Own your customer data.

With more customers dining off-premise and ordering online, taking advantage of the associated data is paramount. Not only does this data tell you who your best customers are for remarketing purposes, but it also can offer direct incentives to encourage repeat customers and target your most loyal customers with a campaign, newsletter, or special offer.

When you own your customer data, you can offer an omnichannel experience – whichever channel your customers interact with your brand, and they get consistent, high-quality service.

Concentrate on what you do best.

With delivery fulfillment covered, your team can concentrate on what it does best – producing delicious food and giving customers excellent service. With more control over how deliveries are managed and the areas you can serve, you can deliver excellence on every plate, even when the customer is dining at home.

Cope with peak service.

The nature of food service is there are peak times and dead times. But you still want to be available as much as possible to rank well on delivery apps and give customers maximum flexibility. 

With a delivery fulfillment partner, you can handle the high volume of your peak dinner service while catering to customers who order at other times.

During quieter periods, you can use your existing drivers. You can supplement your fleet with additional drivers or courier services when things get hectic. The management tools help you cope when running near maximum capacity.

What’s the future of delivery fulfillment?

Experts agree that restaurant delivery is poised for even more growth. By 2023, Europe is expected to have over 81 million users on delivery platforms and 155 million ordering directly from restaurants.

We’ll likely see more high-end restaurants take control of their delivery operations and use delivery fulfillment solutions to offer a better off-premise experience to customers, attempting to match the elevated experience they provide for dine-in guests. Meanwhile, third-party delivery will continue to grow, especially among quick-service restaurants, QSRs, fast-casual restaurants, and fast-food operators.

The biggest takeaway is that brands increasingly use big data analytics from their vast user base to push the envelope and optimize operations. New technologies like AI-powered voice ordering at the drive-thru window and even delivery drones are the next steps forward in this constant drive for innovation and optimization.

In the rapidly evolving restaurant tech ecosystem, restaurant operators who fail to keep up will be left behind. As more customers order digitally and expect their food to be delivered to their door quickly, adopting the latest tech solutions is a must.

Find out how Deliverect Restaurants helps businesses connect with and manage delivery fulfillment in one coherent system.